Code's eyes went wide as Nara's body crashed through the clearing, a brutal thud shaking the ground. Leaves scattered. Dirt kicked up. Hina barely dodged the incoming punch, flipping back with a gasp before landing beside Code, both of them frozen for a moment as the monster stepped into view.
The demon was huge—but not in the way they expected. Its main body was almost lean, hunched—but its arms? They were everywhere. A grotesque tangle of limbs, thick and twitching, knotted like serpents around its torso. Fingers cracked and stretched like they were hungry.
It towered over them, breathing heavy. Its hollow eyes locked onto Nara's crumpled form.
Code felt his gut clench.
"Quickly!" Hina snapped.
Together, they sprinted toward Nara.
He was alive—but just barely. His breathing was ragged, and his left arm hung limp, twisted at a sickening angle. Code dropped beside him, grabbing his shoulder.
"You okay?" he panted.
Nara grit his teeth and stood with Code's help, shaking off dust and blood. "I've had worse," he muttered, eyes flaring. "Damn thing hit hard though... Guess I'll have to hit harder."
Hina stood beside them, sword in hand. "Still talking trash? That's a good sign."
Code smiled in relief. "You scared me for a second."
Nara snorted, wiping blood from his mouth. "I'm not dying here. Not before I make that thing pay."
His eyes locked onto the demon. Rage and fire flickered behind them.
Code clenched his fists, a shaky grin forming. "Alright then. Let's beat it to a pulp!"
There was a short silence. Both Nara and Hina turned toward him slowly, eyes blinking.
"…What?" Code asked, blushing.
Nara raised an eyebrow. "You say that like it's a bar brawl."
"I was just being enthusiastic!"
Hina sighed, lips twitching. "You're lucky you're cute."
"Okay, let's actually go now," Nara said, cracking his knuckles. "Time to tear it apart."
"Not with that arm, you're not," Hina muttered, already dashing forward. "Just follow my lead!"
She shot forward like a bullet—vanishing into a blur.
Her feet hit one of the demon's massive arms, and she ran along it like it was solid ground. The demon roared and swung—but she was already airborne.
"Death Slash!" Hina roared.
Her blade came down in a flash of silver, cleaving through one of the demon's arms in an explosion of blood. The severed limb fell with a sickening crunch.
"RAAARGH!!" The demon screamed.
Nara followed right behind her, clapping his hands mid-air.
"Fire Style... Flame Burst!"
Flames erupted behind him, propelling his leap forward like a rocket. He soared over the creature's head, twisting midair—and slammed his fist down on another arm.
BOOM!
An eruption of fire exploded on impact, the demon screeching as another limb was blasted apart, chunks flying into the forest.
From the back, Code watched, heart hammering, sweat dripping down his brow. He could barely keep up with their movements—but something stirred inside him. His hands itched. His blood felt like it was boiling.
"I won't lose to them…" he muttered.
Then his eyes narrowed. "My turn."
Code slowly shifted his stance—one leg forward, one behind. It was the only form he knew. But it felt right.
He closed his eyes.
His heartbeat slowed.
The wind whispered across his skin.
The sound of battle faded.
Then—he felt it.
The Tenzen Flow.
It wasn't loud. It wasn't dramatic. It was there—a current running beneath his skin, a rhythm his blood finally remembered.
But the moment shattered.
A roar tore through the clearing, and a colossal fist punched through the air toward him.
"Code!" Hina and Nara's voice cracked like thunder.
Code's eyes snapped open. The demon's arm was already descending.
But he didn't flinch.
"Perfect timing..." he murmured.
And then—his body changed.
Veins bulged.
His muscles coiled like springs.
His eyes sharpened, glowing faintly.
Every movement in the forest—the sway of branches, the flick of ash in the wind—was clear.
Nara caught a glimpse of him—still motionless.
"What the hell is he doing?!" Nara shouted, flames bursting from his feet as he launched toward him.
But he was too far.
The demon's fist was already there.
Mere inches.
One breath away.
"CODE!!"
Then—something shifted.
Suuuu…
Air hissed from Code's lips.
He slid his left foot back, grounding himself.
"My muscles… they're enhanced. My bones—stronger. This is it…"
The demon's fist came crashing down.
And Code moved.
A single step forward. His left arm drew back, taut as a bowstring—then—
BOOM!
Two fists collided.
The impact was devastating.
A shockwave erupted, splitting the earth. Wind howled outward, trees snapped like twigs. Nara was flung back mid-dash, his flames snuffed out as he tumbled through the dirt.
And in front of Code—
Shred!
The demon's entire forearm exploded.
Chunks of flesh and bone tore through the sky, splattering across the clearing. Blood misted the air, painting the trees crimson.
Nara rolled to a stop, coughing, wide-eyed.
He stared at Code—still standing in the settling dust, his fist smoldering with heat.
"…Crazy…" Nara muttered, stunned. "Is that still just the Flow Phase?"
He couldn't believe what he'd just seen.
Code's eyes narrowed, the Tenzen surging violently through his veins.
"Whoa… did I just do that?" he muttered, still staring at the demon's obliterated arm.
Hina, who had been dueling the other limbs, landed beside him with a breathless grin.
"That was massive," she said, wide-eyed.
Code approached them, his steps steady.
"Yeah…" Nara agreed, his fist tightening. 'I'm not falling behind.' Determination flared within him like a second heartbeat.
Behind them, the demon's grotesque body writhed—its severed limbs already regenerating, flesh bubbling and stitching back together with a sickening sound.
"Now…" Hina turned to face it, her eyes fierce. "Let's end this thing. For good."
Crack!
Nara rolled his neck, a red glow igniting in his eyes. "Let's go."
"I'll go left, Code take center, Nara right—move!" Hina shouted, bursting forward, her sword trailing black energy.
"Yeah!" Code and Nara answered in unison, charging into the fray.
The demon sensed their rush and unleashed a storm of fists in all directions—but the trio didn't falter.
"Death Slash!" Hina yelled, slicing through the incoming arms, launching off one of them toward the demon's skull.
"Flame Burst!" Nara bellowed, blasting twin fireballs from his palms. They collided with the demon's right side in a fiery explosion.
Boom!
One of its arms erupted in flame and was torn clean off.
"I've found it," Code thought, his fists trembling with power. "My real strength."
Wind spiraled around him as he stretched one leg back, channeling Tenzen into every fiber of his being.
"Aaaaaah!" he roared, his body surging with kinetic force. "Colossus Thrust!"
Crack!
The ground beneath him exploded.
Code vanished from sight—then reappeared a breath later, flying at the demon with terrifying speed.
From above, Nara descended in a storm of fire. Hina was already at the demon's head, her blade raised.
And then—
They struck.
SHHHHRRACK!!
Hina's sword carved into the demon's neck, slicing through bone like silk.
BOOM!
Nara slammed down in an inferno, his flames engulfing the beast.
BLAM!
Code's punch collided with its core—shattering ribs, rupturing its torso in a thunderous eruption.
The demon let out one final, ear-splitting shriek.
"RAAAAAHHH!!"
Its body burst apart in a grotesque explosion of blood and gore, raining flesh across the battlefield.
The forest fell still. The only sound was the ragged breathing of the trio.
"W-We did it!" Nara shouted, a bright grin spreading across his face.
"Yeah… that was epic," Hina panted, resting her hands on her knees. "Ah… ah…"
A smile tugged at Code's lips. "I've gotten stronger," he thought. "I can finally protect what matters."
Flashes of his first mission flickered through his mind—uncertainty, weakness, fear. But now…
As he raised his head to speak, a wave of dizziness crashed over him.
"U-uh…" he muttered, his vision spinning, colors bleeding into one another.
Then, his knees gave out.
"Code!" Hina and Nara shouted in unison, rushing to catch him before he hit the ground.
"He's out cold," Nara said, checking his pulse. "But he's breathing."
"Phew…" Hina let out a shaky breath. "It was his first real battle."
They lifted him together—one arm over each of their shoulders—and began the slow walk out of the forest.
"The moment I get home, I'm diving into the hottest bath I can find," Nara muttered, dragging his feet.
Hina chuckled. "Make it two."
Together, they disappeared into the distance, leaving the battlefield behind.
But the silence that followed was different.
Heavy.
The shadows between the trees thickened, stretching unnaturally across the clearing.
From that darkness, a figure stepped forward.
Tall and gaunt.
Its eyes glowed like dying embers, and its long ears twitched in the stillness.
In its skeletal hand, it held a rubik's cube—throbbing with a malevolent energy, as though it had a heartbeat of its own.
The figure stood in front of the demon's mangled remains. Its gaze didn't waver.
It stared. Silent. Intense.
Then, without a word, it turned and vanished into the shadows.
***
TBC.